Confirmed: PSP Go, Final Fantasy XIV, Motion-Control Wand

What wasn't leaked beforehand? Media Go, a new PSP app that replaces the Media Manager and lets you access the PlayStation Store directly from the PSP in what Sony is calling a "more intuitive interface." A second new app, called Sense Me, will use a 12-tone recognition system to analyze your PSP music library in order to deliver playlists based on moods you select.

Hirai claimed that the PlayStation Network now has more than 24 million registered users in 55 countries, who have apparently downloaded more than 475 million pieces of content. He then revealed that Square's PlayStation-original RPG Final Fantasy VII is (finally) coming to the Playstation Store, along with 50 more PS classics. Also: Sony's PSN video delivery service (movies, TV shows) will now be available natively on the PSP platform as well.

That brings up the lineage question: The PSP Go does not replace the PSP-3000 or the UMD, says Sony, which will support and market both devices. All subsequent PSP titles will be distributed digitally online as well as at retail on UMD. The PSP Go should be available in stores in North America and Europe on October 1.

How much will it cost? Brace yourself: US$250, says Sony. That made me cringe. No price drop on the PSP-3000 either. Considering that you're basically paying for the miniaturization factor here, that price seems awfully high.

Handheld Racer: Gran Turismo PSP

On to Polyphony Digital and Kazunouri "Gran Turismo" Yamauchi, who announced Gran Turismo for the PSP before smoothly pulling a PSP Go out of his pocket running the game. Yamauchi claimed that it was running at 60 fps, and that the final version comes stacked with 800 cars, 35 tracks, and 60 track layout variations. Unique to the PSP: You can trade and share cars between your garage and the garages of other players. Yamauchi said gathering all 800 cars yourself will be difficult, so they've intentionally designed the game so that you'll want to work with friends to get the full deck. On top of that, it's the full-size GT experience, not a scaled-down subset of the series, he emphasized. It's coming October 1 to complement the PSP Go's launch.

Handheld Sneaker: Metal Gear Solid--Peace Walker

Hideo Kojima was on deck next, revealing that Snake (which one, you ask?) is headed back to the PSP in Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker. It isn't a spinoff or a side story, but a true sequel to Metal Gear Solid 3, set ten years after that PS2 game in the 1970s. Kojima emphasized that he would be deeply involved with the game, writing the script as well as handling production duties, and that the MGS4 team was participating as well. The trailer teased nukes and the whole mutually-assured-destruction/balance-of-power shtick, and then it cut to Latin America, before I lost track of the plot altogether. All I know is, at one point, there were what appeared to be four scruffy headband-wearing Snakes on screen at once. (Explicate away, MGS diehards.)

The Brilliant Nonexclusive Demo: Assassin's Creed 2

After several frenetic game montages and a way-too-quick spoken nod to an upcoming exclusive Rockstar espionage game called Agent that Tretton claimed would "have same impact as GTA," Ubisoft took the stage to demo Assassin's Creed 2. The theme? Diversity! The game takes up where the original ended, when <spoilers--go play the game!>, leading to the new setting: the Italian Renaissance.

The demo took us to 1486, if I read the screen captions correctly, and what looked a bit like Venice. Desmond's ancestor stands up from a bench, stabs someone, and then leaps into the rococo architecture, bounding across wooden beams and scrambling up walls. He's apparently a young Florentine noble on a quest for vengeance, someone who has to learn how to be an assassin. He's also friends with Leonardo da Vinci, who will lend him his famous bat-winged flying machine for some vertiginous aerial sleuthing.

Hiding spots are no longer safe, says Ubisoft--a new AI called "the seeker" will hunt you mercilessly. You can disarm enemies, too, and use up to 30 different weapons against them (not to mention six unique weapons if you play Assassin's Creed Bloodlines on the PSP and then plug it into your PS3). "The game is massive in scope," said Ubisoft's reps in closing. Look for Assassin's Creed 2 and Assassin's Creed Bloodline this holiday.

The First Shoe Drops: Final Fantasy XIV Online

Boy, was this totally unexpected footage far too brief. I'm also pretty sure I wasn't the only one thinking that Tretton was kidding around when he said, deadpan, "This next trailer's for Final Fantasy XIV, coming in 2010." And then the footage ran, and we knew he was serious, and we collected our jaws from our laps.

Here's what I grabbed from the CGI footage, which sadly isn't much: "Only a forgotten page of eternity...there lies a land embraced by mighty gods...her name Erozea...as fates cross, swords will clash." So it's Square Enix's next big online project, and it's exclusive for PS3. Quite the coup for Sony.

The Second Shoe Drops: PlayStation Motion Control

"Take that, Microsoft." Not what Sony's Dr. Richard "Eye Toy" Marks actually said when he took the stage, but you could practically hear it whispered as Sony divulged its own take on motion control.

Imagine a microphone with a translucent bulb in lieu of the mic's metal mesh, capable of lighting up and changing color. ("Just a prototype," said Sony, and the final look will probably change.) Now imagine that device working in tandem with the PlayStation Eye to offer stunningly precise 1-to-1 tracking, and you have what Sony informally dubbed "PlayStation Motion Control."

You can also use the controls to lay out paths of objects, say a line of dominoes, and then send them toppling. A real-time strategy demo looked visually primitive, but illustrated how you could lasso troops and tell them where to go--even zip down into first-person shooter mode and bang away. According to Marks, the system tracks at submillimeter accuracy. Believe it or not, they're talking spring 2010 for product launch.

The Biggest Disappointment? No PS3 Price Cut. 'Nuff Said.

And that's a wrap, folks. Of the three shows, I'd mark Microsoft's and Sony's down for "tied," with Nintendo's a respectable (if not as intrepid) second.

The screen was particularly good. It is bright and visible from most angles, however heat is an issue, particularly around the Windows button on the front, and on the back where the battery housing is located.

My first impression after unboxing the Q702 is that it is a nice looking unit. Styling is somewhat minimalist but very effective. The tablet part, once detached, has a nice weight, and no buttons or switches are located in awkward or intrusive positions.

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